A Search of Heart
by opaltiger
Summary: An alternate ending to Ruby Knight. When Bhelliom falls into the the hands of the enemy, Sparhawk searches for a way to counter it. Part One of the Khadasar Saga
1. Glossary

A Search of Heart  
  
Part One of the Khadasar Saga  
  
Glossary.  
  
Asarat: The world from which Khadasar originate. There is not much known about it, as few have ever been there. Asarat is ruled by Duke Sar Dors, a Khadasan. Its banner is a silver eagle on a black field. See also: Khadasan.  
  
Caire al isam: In the tongue of Asarat, Fountain of Death. The source of a Khadasax's power. See also: Caire al itore; Khadasax.  
  
Caire al itore: In the tongue of Asarat, Fountain of Life. The source of a Khadasan's power. See also: Caire al isam; Khadasan.  
  
Khadasan: The light side of Khadasar. Formed by three men and two women, Khadasan constantly fight the battle against Khadasax. See also: Khadasar; Khadasax; Asarat.  
  
Khadasar: Ten men and women, separated into two groups: Khadasan, the light side of Khadasar, and Khadasax, the dark side of Khadasar. These men and women all share one amazing power: They can walk through worlds. A Khadasar's magic grows for every world visited. They are amazingly good at everything, fighting, magic even cards. They originate from their own world, Asarat. See also: Asarat; Khadasan; Khadasax.  
  
Khadasax: The dark side of Khadasar, formed y two men and three women, their goal is world chaos. See also: Khadasan; Khadasar; Asarat. 


	2. An Answer Found

A Search of Heart  
  
Part One of the Khadasar Saga  
  
Summary: This is an alternate ending to Ruby Knight, and what follows after. Upon journeying to Ghwerig's cave, the Pandion Knight Sparhawk discovered that he had been too late. Bhelliom, The Sapphire Rose, had fallen into the hands of the enemy, Otha of Zemoch. Though the rings are still in his possession, Sparhawk fears Azash, evil Elder God of Styricum, might persuade Ghwerig the Troll-Dwarf to craft new ones. Sparhawk, believing that Bhelliom could be resisted, now journeys with fellow Knights of the Church Sir Tynian of the Alcione Knights, Sir Bevier of the Cyrinic Knights, Sir Ulath of the Genedian Knights, his squire, Kurik, the thief Talen, Pandion apprentice Berit and fellow Pandion Knight Kalten, as well as Sephrenia, the Styric sorceress. Our story begins one night in south Lamorkand.  
  
Disclaimer: Almost everything in this story belongs to David Eddings, respectfully.  
  
Claimer: Wow!!! I get to _claim_ something!!! The Magician's Emerald! (cool name, huh?)  
  
Chapter One: An Answer Found  
  
He is in a room. The shadows surrounding him do not intimidate him.  
  
For in his heart he knows he must be here.  
  
Out of the fog rides a knight. Semi-transparent, but still visible. For the second time in months the world of spirits is communicating with him.  
  
'Sparhawk,' the knight says. 'Thy quest is noble, for while the jewel, The Sapphire Rose, can break worlds, it is not all-powerful...'  
  
The ghost broke off for a while; then continued.  
  
'That which counters it is hidden. Hidden in the deepest parts of an empire ancient beyond beliefs, The Magician's Emerald is capable of countering the mighty Bhelliom,'  
  
Sparhawk gasped. 'I thank thee, brother, for thy information. Thou knowledge might very well save us all. Thank you brother,' he said.  
  
Then the dream broke apart.  
  
***  
  
His squire, Kurik, was shaking him awake.  
  
'Sparhawk, we have company!' he panted.  
  
It was clear he had been running hard.  
  
'What kind of company?' he asked, getting up.  
  
'Zemochs, riding up from the east,' Kurik replied.  
  
'How many?' Sparhawk was already getting into his armour, his sword at his side.  
  
'About a dozen, the others are getting ready,' Kurik replied, buckling his own sword on.  
  
The squire whistled, and his horse came into sight. He made to mount it, but Sparhawk stopped him.  
  
'Wait! You and Berit protect Sephrenia, we'll handle this!' Kurik began to object, but was stopped with a gesture from Sparhawk.  
  
'If this is another attempt on Sephrenia's life, I'd rather have someone protecting her, Kurik.'  
  
Kurik sighed, but obeyed. 'Berit, come here,' he commanded the apprentice.  
  
Sparhawk looked around for the others, and saw them already on their horses, ready to fight.  
  
'All right. Lances first, better not risk close range combat until there are no other alternatives!'  
  
Just then, Talen came into view holding a longbow.  
  
'I have no idea where you learned to use that, but its help would be appreciated,' Sparhawk said.  
  
The young thief grinned. 'Oh, I didn't learn in a 'dishonourable way' as you might put it, quite the opposite, actually. Berit taught me,' he answered. 'He's pretty good, as you might remember.'  
  
Sparhawk smiled. Once they had had Berit shoot a burning arrow into a stable to provide them with a distraction for the Church Soldiers who were watching the Pandion chapterhouse under Primate Annias' orders.  
  
Sparhawk looked around. His fellow knights had their lances ready, swords and axes as backup.  
  
He watched the soldiers approaching, apparently unawares that their enemy had noticed them.  
  
Sparhawk snorted. That was soon to change.  
  
He motioned for the others to get ready, shifting uncomfortably in Faran's saddle.  
  
Then he suddenly yelled, 'Charge!' Their horses thundered down the slope separating them from the enemy.  
  
Sparhawk lowered his lance, getting ready for impact.  
  
His lance impaled one of the soldiers in the stomach, but broke with the force of the blow. Ulath and Tynian also downed one man, Tynian's lance staying whole. He went for another charge, but his lance shattered an attacker's shield.  
  
Kalten's lance broke on the first pass, but he was now swinging with his sword, downing men at an amazing pace.  
  
Talen had also downed one man, with his longbow, but retreated in fear of hitting one of his allies.  
  
Sparhawk joined the fray, bringing men down with high broad cuts.  
  
The battle did not last long, the knights quickly overcoming most opposition.  
  
They returned to the camp, tired, but victorious.  
  
'Thank God, Sparhawk,' Kurik came running up to them. 'You were right. While you were fighting, three of them tried to sneak up on us. Me'n Berit took care of them, though,' he half-boasted.  
  
That was when Sparhawk noticed the blood coming out of a wound in Kurik's shoulder.  
  
'You should get that bandaged,' he told his squire.  
  
Kurik waved it off. 'Come on, Sparhawk. Its only a scratch!'  
  
But Sparhawk had other plans. He took Kurik's hand in his own and used a torn of piece of his shirt to fashion a crude bandage.  
  
They decided to have 'breakfast', as it was about 4 o'clock. Around the fire they risked, Sparhawk told them about his dream.  
  
'So, basically, we're supposed to go to this 'ancient empire', whatever that is, recover a jewel stronger than Bhelliom itself, and just waltz out!?' Ulath asked, incredulously.  
  
Sparhawk smiled. 'Yeah, that's the idea. Why?' he asked innocently.  
  
Ulath fumed, but remained silent.  
  
'Any idea where this 'ancient empire' even is?' Sephrenia asked.  
  
'Well, I've been thinking it might be the Tamul Empire, but I'm not sure,' Sparhawk replied.  
  
She sighed. 'Oh well, we might as well get going,' she said.  
  
And so they rode off.  
  
***  
  
It took them the better part of seven days to arrive in north Pelosia, where they planned to get a ship to Thalesia. From there they could probably find a ship in to Tamul.  
  
The travellers were weary, eager to get to an inn to stay the night.  
  
'Look, there's Apalia,' Kalten remarked, as it appeared over the horizon. 'I'd put it at about a league away, hmm?' Sparhawk nodded.  
  
'In the morning we should be able to find a ship to Thalesia from there,' he replied.  
  
'Ahhh. In the meantime, I'm getting a nice hot bath,' Ulath said.  
  
***  
  
They arrived in Apalia one hour later, and found an inn called The Stallion Arms.  
  
After eating dinner, Sparhawk decided to go to bed, as he would probably need energy the following day.  
  
***  
  
He was once again in the room. The shadows in the corners.  
  
And once again a knight approached him.  
  
'Though thy quest is right, the answers are to be found in Eosia and no place else,' the ghostly apparition said. 'A week is all thou has to complete thy task.'  
  
Once again Sparhawk awoke to see Kurik shaking him.  
  
'We need to get a ship to Thalesia, Sparhawk! Wake up!' he said.  
  
Sparhawk sat up. 'We're not going to Thalesia, Kurik,' he said.  
  
***  
  
In another part of the world, the former Pandion Knight Martel sat fuming.  
  
'What do you mean they got away? We set the perfect ambush! We even put sleeping drugs in their drink!' he shouted at Krager, who had organized the 'ambush'.  
  
'I-it appears they weren't sleeping drugs, but rather caffeine, Master,' Krager replied, stuttering slightly.  
  
'Caffeine?' Martel roared, 'Caffeine! You worthless fool! Tell Adus to go and hunt them down! Let him take a score of men, just as long as he kills Sparhawk and the others.'  
  
'Yes Master, right away Master,' Krager said and scurried out of the room.  
  
*** 'What do you mean, we're not going to Thalesia?' Sephrenia asked.  
  
They had gathered in Sparhawk's room to hear him out.  
  
'Another Knight visited me tonight,' Sparhawk replied. 'He said that what we seek is to be found in Eosia, and that we only have one week.'  
  
'Well, then we'd better get going, hadn't we?' said a childish voice from the doorway.  
  
They all spun around to see Flute, the mysterious child who had disappeared after journeying to Ghwerig's cave.  
  
Sephrenia gasped. 'Flute! Where have you been?' she asked. 'We were worried sick!'  
  
'We were?' Kalten murmured to Tynian, who grinned.  
  
Sparhawk was confused. Sephrenia had never acted this way before.  
  
***  
  
Ten leagues away the man known as Adus was riding. Riding with one purpose on his mind. The death of Sparhawk.  
  
He had with him twenty men, to aid him in his job. Because this time, he vowed, he would not fail. He would either kill Sparhawk, or Sparhawk would kill him. There was no other possibility.  
  
***  
  
'I know what you're looking for,' Flute said. 'And I know where it is. Quite a long way away, actually.'  
  
'Tamul?' Bevier asked.  
  
'Oh no. Sparhawk was perfectly right,' she said snuggling into Sephrenia. 'The empire _you're_ looking for is Styricum.'  
  
There was a shocked silence.  
  
'The Magician's Emerald is rumoured to lie in central Pelosia, three days hard riding from here. Not to mention that Otha will try to stop you,' she continued. 'In fact, he probably has men after you right now.  
  
'But no one knows where Styricum truly was,' Sephrenia objected.  
  
Sparhawk thought otherwise. 'Oh no, little mother, I think you know perfectly well, don't you?'  
  
Sephrenia smiled. 'What a smart boy I have,' she said.  
  
'Then it's settled!' Kalten declared. 'We ride for, we ride for...Umm. Where do we ride for again?'  
  
Everyone laughed.  
  
***  
  
Fifteen minutes later, after paying a groggy innkeeper, they were settled and ready to ride.  
  
As the group rode out of town, Sparhawk thought about Flute's words. _In fact, he probably has men after you right now..._  
  
Just as he thought those words, a group of riders appeared on the horizon riding with obvious hostile intent straight for them.  
  
'Look out, we have company!' Sparhawk shouted, taking out his sword.  
  
'Oh no, not again,' Kalten grumbled, unsheathing his sword also.  
  
Ulath, Berit and Bevier had axes at the ready, while Talen had his bow out and aimed.  
  
Kurik and Tynian fell back to flank Sephrenia with their shields.  
  
As they charged, Sparhawk saw who was leading the attackers: Adus.  
  
Then the groups met, and he pulled his attention off Adus and onto the battle.  
  
There were about twenty men, brandishing swords and axes.  
  
His group of Knights ran into them, slashing and blocking.  
  
But even with all their skill, the Knights of the Church steadily grew tired.  
  
Suddenly, though, arrows started falling from the sky, downing their attackers.  
  
Sparhawk risked a quick glance back, and saw Talen and Berit standing there, bows held.  
  
Sparhawk grinned, then turned back to the battle. Or what was left of the battle, anyway.  
  
The few remaining men were quickly succumbing to the Knights of the Church.  
  
Adus, though, was charging straight towards him.  
  
Sparhawk raised his shield to fend off the man's many blows, and then began landing his own.  
  
He nicked Adus on the shoulder, causing him to go on the defensive.  
  
Sparhawk exploited this, by pushing him back farther and farther.  
  
Then, finally, he executed a perfect high cut, lopping the man's head right off, causing the body to sway and fall in its saddle.  
  
After the battle they all regrouped.  
  
'Told ya so,' Flute said with a grin.  
  
Like it? Please r+r! (and no flames) 


	3. Myths and Legends

Chapter Two: Myths and Legends  
  
Disclaimer: I never would have guessed. *yawn* All characters in this story *yawn* belong to *yawn* David Edd.Zzzzzzzzz  
  
Claimer: *wide awake* Claimy time! Claimy time! The Magician's Emerald! (still think it's a cool name!)  
  
***  
  
Sparhawk and his friends had been riding for what seemed like two days, but Flute assured them it had only been six hours, when they set up camp by a lake side.  
  
The little girl had a knack for time.  
  
None of them had ever really understood her, just as long as what she said was true.  
  
'So. Now we know where it is, but we still don't know where where it is is,' Kalten said.  
  
'Did that make any sense to you?' Tynian asked Ulath  
  
'He lost me on that sharp turn at the end,' the bulky Genedian replied, grinning.  
  
'What he meant was that we know it's in the Styric Empire, but we don't know where _that_ is,' Sparhawk patiently explained.  
  
After setting up camp, they had decided to post double sentries.  
  
Under Sparhawk's 'persuasion' Kalten agreed to take first watch with him.  
  
Just then, Tynian and Ulath arrived to relieve them.  
  
'Go, you two. Get some rest,' Tynian said.  
  
'Fine with me,' Kalten said, and yawned. 'I'm asleep on my feet, anyway.'  
  
Sparhawk grinned and followed his childhood friend back to their tents.  
  
When they arrived, Sparhawk was surprised to see Sephrenia sitting next to their fire, drinking tea.  
  
'What bothers you, little mother?' he asked, using the Pandion greeting.  
  
'I've been thinking. As a child, I heard fables about The Magician's Emerald. It is rumoured to be hidden in a temple, guarded by spirits of the night. I fear for your safety,' she replied.  
  
Sparhawk laughed silently. 'Do not fear for my safety, little mother,' he said.  
  
They sat in silence for a while, pondering these words.  
  
Kaltens snores could be heard from his tent, bringing smiles to their faces.  
  
'He snores like a bear, doesn't he?' Sephrenia remarked after a while.  
  
Sparhawk smiled. 'That he does, Sephrenia, that he does,' he replied.  
  
Suddenly, he sensed evil in the air. He looked around, then through himself into Sephrenia. An arrow came whistling from the trees, striking Sparhawk in his armoured shoulder.  
  
Without thinking he drew his sword and threw, it spinning, in the direction the arrow had come from.  
  
A muffled yell could be heard, then a splash as the attacker fell into the lake, shortly followed by a metallic clang as Sparhawk's sword fell to the ground.  
  
He ran over to pick it up, and looked into the lake.  
  
It was deep, and the body had already sunk out of sight, leaving a red trail behind it.  
  
Sparhawk sighed, and returned to Sephrenia, who still sat by the fire.  
  
'He got away. Well, he didn't exactly get away, but his body did. Fell into the lake,' he explained.  
  
Sephrenia looked at him. 'Are you OK?' she asked, worriedly.  
  
'It's fine,' he replied. 'Rebounded of my armour.'  
  
Tynian arrived. 'What happened?' he asked. 'I heard some yelling, and came to investigate.'  
  
'Someone tried to kill Sephrenia,' Sparhawk explained. 'But I blocked it with my armour.'  
  
'Oh, that's all is it? Than I'd better get back to watching,' Tynian said dryly.  
  
After further investigating they decided to ride on, to avoid any other ambushes.  
  
In a few hours they reached the Three Oaks, a village in south Pelosia, and decided to have breakfast.  
  
Sparhawk walked through the doors and up to the counter. The innkeeper was fat, with a patch of gray hair.  
  
'What would you like My Lord?' he asked, immediately recognising Sparhawk's armour.  
  
'Breakfast for ten, and lots of ale. Oh, and some milk,' the Pandion Knight replied.  
  
As the innkeeper bustled into the kitchen, Sparhawk looked around the inn. There were few patrons at this hour, and even the four men that sat at a table were hustled together, whispering excitedly.  
  
As Sparhawk approached, he could some of what they were saying.  
  
'Yes, they're saying Khadasax are out and about,' one man said.  
  
'Pah. Khadasax, Khadasan. All a fable. No such thing,' a second answered.  
  
'Yes, but-'  
  
Then Sparhawk moved on and could not hear them anymore. He decided to ask Sephrenia about these Khadasax and Khadasan.  
  
He went back out side and motioned for the others to enter.  
  
When they came to their table, a large breakfast was waiting. Everyone, especially Kalten, began eating.  
  
After breakfast Sparhawk asked Sephrenia about Khadasax.  
  
Her breath caught. 'Sparhawk. Talk to me tonight. I'll tell you all I know,' and with that she left.  
  
Sparhawk shrugged, and went to the stable to get their horses.  
  
Thinking other things, Sparhawk rode of after the others.  
  
***  
  
By nightfall they reached Arcium, and camped along the border.  
  
After dinner, Sparhawk asked Sephrenia about this Khadasax business.  
  
'Ok Sparhawk, listen well. I am about to tell you a three thousand year old legend,' she said, and began.  
  
_to be continued_  
  
r+r! r+r! r+r! r+r! r+r!  
  
Oops. Got a bit carried away. (  
  
Ooooh! Cliffhanger!  
  
Please excuse the shortness of this chapter. 


End file.
